In the midst of the season, as the number of matches and minutes start piling up, every win in conference play is pivotal. After a demanding road trip, the Notre Dame men’s soccer team found one. Fueled by a home crowd of over 1,700 fans, the Irish defeated ACC opponent Virginia 3-1. While the performance wasn't always the prettiest, a resilient Irish squad once again ground out a good result.
The match opened with fireworks as junior forward Matthew Roou headed in a goal off of a short corner routine in the fourth minute. His re-direction pinballed off Virginia keeper Holden Brown, the bar and the right post before drifting over the goal line. The early strike continued a brilliant run of scoring form for Roou, who now has six goals in nine matches this season to lead the team.
When asked about what has gone into his recent success, Roou spoke about “the drive and desire to score goals every game and, even more importantly, win the games". His early goal broke a run of slow starts for the Irish and helped build early momentum in the match. It was immediately followed by an impressive one-on-one denial by senior goalkeeper Bryan Dowd. Overall, Dowd performed at a high level again, making five saves and coming out decisively throughout the match to keep the Cavalier attack at bay.
Virginia grew into the match, taking more possession and creating chances, particularly through Reese Miller down the left side. As the left midfielder in Virginia’s 3-5-2, he created overloads down the left side, running at defenders and providing dangerous crosses. However, the Irish delivered a deflating blow from another set piece with 30 seconds left in the first half. After an inviting service from sophomore midfielder KK Baffour, the ball found its way to the feet of sophomore midfielder Wyatt Lewis behind the play. His left-footed shot tipped off a defender in the goalmouth, beating Brown for a 2-0 Irish lead.
“We haven’t capitalized on [set pieces] enough this year, but this game was massive,” Roou said. "Getting two in the first half to take a lead was amazing.”
Those well-timed goals did not deter the Cavaliers, though. They opened up the half by creating massive chances largely from the play of Mouhameth Thiam and Stephen Annor Gyamfi. Virginia snatched a goal in the 50th minute after a quick combination between the two prompted a cross from Miller. The delivery forced a miscue from graduate student defender Mo Williams, whose attempted clearance ended up in the back of the net.
The pace of Thiam and Annor on the counterattack posed major problems for the Irish defense. Their pressure culminated in a golden opportunity to level the score, one which Annor squandered. With Dowd chased out of position after a 59th-minute save, Kome Ubogu's rebound cross found the freshman all alone at the back post. In front of a gaping goal, Annor mishandled his footwork, one-timing the ball wide from four yards away.
After a strong period for Virginia, the Irish scored a much-needed insurance goal in the 74th minute. Junior forward Eno Nto broke through on goal, shooting into the bottom corner as he fell to make it 3-1. From there, the Irish comfortably held on to their lead and earned another conference win.
Notre Dame head coach Chad Riley said his team “performed pretty well” against “one of the top teams in the country year in and year out.”
“At this time of year you want to keep trying to perform well. But the fatigue starts to build,” Riley said. “I’m really proud of the guys’ toughness and then the whole squad really contributed tonight.”
The Irish earn some deserved rest this week before a road trip next Sunday to face NC State in Raleigh.
Sign up for our Observer Sports newsletter!Have an Irish sports question? Ask it for our Observer Sports mailbag!
Irish capitalize on set pieces, beat Virginia 3-1
Irish junior forward Matthew Roou dribbles the ball past a defender during Notre Dame's 3-2 win over Clemson at Alumni Stadium on Sept. 9, 2023.
